Georgia House passes bill to stop Atlanta gay discrimination fines
We've been waiting for something interesting to happen with the Druid Hills Golf Club story, but we certainly weren't expecting this. The Georgia House passed legislation this week to bar the city of Atlanta from fining the golf club for not following the discrimination ordinance. The bill, sponsored by Republican Earl Ehrhart (shown), stops any state agency or local government from fining any person or group that does not extend spousal benefits to gay members. "You shouldn't have to sue your political subdivision — your city, your county — in order to gain those constitutional rights" to freedom of association, Ehrhart said. Atlanta area legislators protested, but the bill passed 124-39 anyway. Atlanta Rep. Bob Holmes called it bad legislation, "not only because it seeks to pre-empt the city of Atlanta from enforcing laws against discrimination based on marital status. But it also establishes a precedent that is, in fact, bad, wrong and inconsistent with the principles of local control."Atlanta Journal-Constitution[Date: 12-Feb-05 ]
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